From First Touch (And Never Let Me Go)
by Reina Ariadne
Summary: Jim is in trouble (again), and Spock saves the day.


I first watched STID for Benedict Cumberbatch, but the movie was so good that I went back to watch the other two Star Trek movies immediately after. Please excuse any mistakes, all my knowledge of the Star Trek universe comes from the movies, and an obscene amount of Spirk fanfiction.

Summary: Jim is in trouble (again), and Spock saves the day.

* * *

Jim was dying.

Again.

Leonard had been worried (but not entirely surprised) when Spock and Sulu rushed into the medbay, a limp captain between them. Two years into their five-year mission, and the kid still hadn't learned not to poke his nose where he wasn't wanted. Then again, that wouldn't have made him a very good explorer, which Jim certainly was. If 'explorer' was another word for 'nosy kid'.

It was a goddamned poisonous plant this time. They had beamed down onto a new uncharted planet that was exhibiting signs of life, and barely two steps into the new territory a freakin' _plant_ had wrapped a vine around Jim's leg, pricked him with one of its thorns, and Jim went down like a stone. And of course it had to be a plant they'd never encountered before and thus had no antidote for its poison.

Seriously, how do these things keep happening to the kid? Forget his infamous lucky streak of cheating death, he'd have to have ridiculously bad luck to even _get_ into these sorts of situations in the first place.

But back to the problem at hand. An hour after Jim was rushed to medbay, and things were already not looking good. The captain's face had taken on a deathly grey pallor, and despite being unconscious, his face was scrunched up in pain, sweat plastering his wheat-coloured locks to his forehead. Spock had placed two fingers lightly on Jim's forehead (the hobgoblin actually _voluntarily touched someone,_ perhaps tomorrow the Klingons will come knocking at their door with fruit baskets and a peace treaty!), and murmured softly "he is in much pain, but he is fighting."

See, that was just another thing on the list of things very wrong with James Tiberius Kirk. Leonard had noticed that the only person the First Officer willingly made skin contact with was his captain, with the exception of Uhura, prior to their breakup two months ago. He was both surprised and grateful that the Vulcan had managed to end his relationship with their spitfire Communications Officer amicably- if he already thought an Uhura in love was scary, he didn't want to find out what a heartbroken and vindictive one could do. He shudders as the thought brings up unwanted reminders of his own messy divorce.

Initially, Leonard had wondered why the seemingly happy couple had ended their relationship so suddenly, but watching the Vulcan now it was achingly clear. From the moment they had started working together, it was clear that Jim and Spock shared a connection unrivalled by any other, even by that between Spock and Uhura. There was a Vulcan term for it, he remembers. T'hy'la?

Leonard scrubs a hand through his hair with a weary sigh. "It's not good," he admits. "He's fading fast. I'd give him three or four hours, tops." Uhura had beamed down again to the planet to look for help, but who knows if she would even be able to find any natives living on the planet, let alone speak their language and convince them to give her an antidote they may or may not even have.

Spock tilts his head in acknowledgement. "In that case, doctor, I shall depart with haste to the science labs and endeavour to produce an antidote." He leaves the medbay quickly, as any faithful First Officer and Science Officer would do. But Leonard knows better. He had seen the slight trembling of the Spock's fingers when they were pressed to the captain's forehead.

He pulls up a chair and sits with his captain, hoping that Jim would wake up, if only for the fact that he was Spock's… T'hy'la? Ashayam?

Whatever. He's a doctor, not a damn Vulcan thesaurus. He just hopes Jim wakes up.

The good news was that Uhura had managed to locate natives living on the planet and discovered that they did indeed have the antidote to the plant's poison, but it would take time for negotiations to go through. Time that Jim Kirk did not have.

"You've got to hang in there, kid," Leonard tells the still captain as he checks his vitals for the umpteenth time. "Everyone's working their asses off trying to save yours, so you better not die on us before that."

Of course, that was the moment Spock chooses to rush into the medbay, slightly harried with a determined glint in his eyes.

"Doctor, I believe I may have an idea that will help save the captain." He says.

"Are you sure about this?" Leonard asks sceptically after the Commander explains his idea.

"In theory, there is an 86.4% chance that 'this' will work."

'This' was Spock's idea to mind meld with Jim- a meld would enable Spock to siphon away Jim's pain onto himself. It would 'trick his body into thinking that it is my own', the commander had said, his logic being that if Jim was spending a lot of energy dealing with the pain, taking the pain away would essentially allow Jim's body to refocus more effort into fighting off the poison, buying him more time until Uhura is able to get the antidote. Leonard agrees that his logic is sound, except for one problem.

"And in practice?"

"…Only bonded pairs have managed to sustain the meld successfully for a prolonged period of time."

" _Are you kidding me._ Since you and Jim aren't bonded, how on Earth do you expect to-"

"I refuse to let Jim die another time, doctor." The slight crease in Spock's brow was the only clue Leonard had to realising just how desperate the Vulcan was. "This may be an illogical statement, but I believe that I can sustain the meld for as long as Jim needs. However, if you have a better idea, I will gladly hear it." He raises an eyebrow at Leonard, waiting, the picture of perfect Vulcan snobbery. He bites back a sigh.

"I'll go prepare a biobed for you," Leonard says.

They eventually decided that the best position was to push the biobeds as closely beside each other as possible, so that Spock could still maintain contact with his Captain even if he was to fall unconscious. Not wanting to waste a second longer, Spock lay down on the biobed and closed his hand around Jim's wrist, second and third finger pressing into the pulse point.

As Jim's expression begins to ease and Spock's twists in pain, his hand reflexively tightening around Jim's wrist, Leonard scrubs a hand down his face and prays fervently that the Vulcan's crazy idea will actually work.

Because a world without one James T. Kirk would be a very dark one indeed.

When Spock next opens his eyes, he is greeted by the sight of an awake, _alive_ Captain Kirk, grinning at him from the biobed beside his.

"Hey, Spock," the captain greeted. "Looks like we've both done something pretty stupid today, huh?"

Spock struggled for a moment to rein in his emotions at seeing his captain alive and well again before he could reply. "Negative, captain. I had merely performed the necessary actions to enhance your chances of surviving. You, however, stepped directly into the path of an unknown predatory plant and allowed it to infect you with its poison."

"Basically, all in a day's work, Spock."

"I would advise you not to join the landing party in all future explorations, but I know you will simply ignore it."

Jim grins. "See? I'm glad we know each other so well now."

In all honesty, Leonard shouldn't have been surprised that Jim and Spock had pulled off the damn-near impossible move of sustaining the mind-meld for over 6 hours.

Jim beams back down with Uhura to thank the natives for their help (with extra protection against any more poisonous flora this time, of course), while Leonard watches over Spock as he recovers on the biobed. When Jim left, Leonard had seen the look exchanged between the captain and his vice-captain. It seemed different, somehow, and Leonard wondered what exactly had happened between them when their minds were linked during those long, nerve-wrecking hours when Leonard didn't have just one, but _two_ patients to keep alive.

And then he abruptly decided he didn't want to know because Jim had raised an eyebrow suggestively at the Vulcan, the Vulcan raised his eyebrow back, and the air of desperate longing around the two had become supercharged _sexual tension_ in an instant. Leonard immediately kicked Jim out of his medbay because he wanted to keep it _sterile_ , thank you very much, and also because Spock didn't seem up to that kind of… vigorous activity, yet.

After Jim leaves, Leonard is conducting final health checks on Spock when he casually comments "So… you successfully mind-melded with Jim, huh. Does that mean anything? Are you guys, like, Vulcan-married now or something?"

Spock is silent for a while before he replies. "We now have a mind-bond, yes. But Jim can choose to break it anytime he wishes."

"But he's not going to?"

Spock colours slightly and inclines his head. "It appears that he is not. I was not aware that the captain held the same… feelings for me, as I hold for him. But they became apparent through the mind-meld."

Leonard grins, and claps the Vulcan on the back. "Well then, congratulations, kid. I finally don't have to watch the two of you pining after each other like lovesick puppies." He calls Spock 'kid' too, because he realises that under all his stoicism and professionalism, Spock is young and scared and in love too. On instinct, he places his hand on Spock's wrist, opening his mind and allowing the Vulcan to _feel_ everything he was feeling and thinking in that moment. "I'm glad you're alright, kid."

The Vulcan looks back at him, a profound understanding in his very non-Vulcan eyes, and nods, clasping his wrist once firmly then letting go.

"Thank you, Doctor."

* * *

It's a little rough for my first Spirk fanfiction, but I hope you guys enjoyed it! Leave me a review if you did~


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